VIRGINIA, USA: Interview with Dee Harlow

I was born in Thailand and have lived in so many places that there is not one place that I can genuinely say I am “from.”

At this moment, I live in northern Virginia but it is really only a pit stop until next July when my husband and I, and our two kids, will go live in Vientiane, Laos for two years. And this is after having just lived in Mexico for two years…thus is life in the US Foreign Service.

What language(s) do you speak?

I speak Thai like a six year old, English like a native speaker, can recall some Uzbek, trying to retain Spanish, and now learning Lao.

When did you first become a mother?

I gave birth to my twin son and daughter the day before I turned 42 in 2009.

Are you a stay-at-home mom or do you work?

I have been a stay-at-home mom since my children were born up until three weeks ago when I started Lao language training at the Foreign Service Institute.

Why do you blog/write?

I first started blogging in 2003 when I was experiencing a huge transition in my life. It grew to become a source for sharing my new experiences in the Peace Corps when I was in Uzbekistan, and thereafter I continued blogging to keep family and friends abreast of our lives while working in Sudan and Indonesia. That blog has been idle for several years now, and I currently only keep up a blog where I post mostly pictures of the children for our family and close friends.

How would you say that you are different from other mothers?

Funny, I never thought that I would be much ‘like’ other mothers, having had preconceived notions of ‘how’ I would be a mother once I had children. But I realize now that all mothers are very much alike, finding it reassuring, humbling and inspiring at the same time.

What do you view as the challenges of raising a child in today’s world?

My biggest fear is raising my children to fear the world. Bad news rules the airwaves and suspicion of others closet our children’s natural curiosity and open hearts. I want my children to be open to the world and the people around them while ensuring that they are safe.

How did you find World Moms Blog?

I was referred to WMB by Shaula Bellour, a twin mom friend who has been extremely supportive and helpful during my early motherhood days and continues to be a role model and an inspiration for living overseas and traveling with children.

What do you like most about World Moms Blog?

I love the universality of our voices as moms combined with our unique perspectives from around the world. I have never seen anything like it!

One of Dee’s earliest memories was flying on a trans-Pacific flight from her birthplace in Bangkok, Thailand, to the United States when she was six years old. Ever since then, it has always felt natural for her to criss-cross the globe. So after growing up in the northeast of the US, her life, her work and her curiosity have taken her to over 32 countries. And it was in the 30th country while serving in the Peace Corps in Uzbekistan that she met her husband. Together they embarked on a career in international humanitarian aid working in refugee camps in Darfur, Sudan, and the tsunami torn coast of Aceh, Indonesia.
Dee is now a full-time mother of three-year old twins and continues to criss-cross the globe every two years with her husband who is in the US Foreign Service. They currently live in Vientiane, Laos, and are loving it! You can read about their adventures at Wanderlustress.

Thanks Jen! Lao is going really well. I have a slight head start bc it is very similar to Thai. A lot of the vocabulary is the same. My husband and I are the only 2 ppl in the class so it has been an ‘interesting’ marital experience as well!

Thank you. It is one of my favorite photos from Africa. It was taken at dawn in the Sossusvlei Desert of Nambia and I had never seen a shadow so extended before. I was waiting for the hot air balloon to fill up before going on my first balloon ride!

Great interview, Dee — I love your perspective on things. So glad to have you here! You are an inspiration to me, too and I’m excited to follow the next phase of your adventures. Now we just need to figure out a way for our paths to cross